Sermon Audio

Reading of God’s Word

“Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” So Jesus said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.’ Jesus said these things in the synagogue, as he taught at Capernaum.” (John 6:49–59, ESV)

Introduction

When we use the words life and death we typically have physical life and physical death in mind. When we say that someone is alive we typically mean that they are breathing. When we say that someone is dead we typically mean that their body has stopped functioning as it should – the heart is no longer beating, the lungs are no longer processing air, the brain is no longer firing.  This is what we typically have in view when we talk about life and death.

And these are the things that many people are most concerned with – life and death in the physical sense.To the natural man nothing is more important than possessing physical life. Physical death is the worst possibility of all. Nothing is more serious to the natural man.

But the scriptures present us with much more complex view of life and death, one that we would do well to adopt.

According to the scriptures our greatest enemy of all is not physical death, but spiritual and eternal death. And the greatest blessing of all is not physical life as we know it, but spiritual life.

To state it another way the scriptures teach that it is possible to be alive physically (the heart beating, the lungs processing air, the brain firing as it out to fire) and yet to be living in a state of death. Conversely it is possible to be physically dead, and yet alive in the spirit. I suppose I should also say that it is possible to be alive and alive, and dead and dead.

Though this way of speaking may sound strange at first it becomes clear when we remember a few things:

First of all, we should remember that we are complex beings consisting of body and soul. The body may be alive and the soul in a state of death, the body may be dead and the soul in a state of life, and so on.

Secondly, we should recognize that death is not merely an event, but also a state of being. God did not lie when he warned Adam that he would surely die in the day that ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Though it is true Adam went on living for hundreds of years more after that day, he did in fact die on that day. He was given over to death. The death that once threatened him was now a sure thing. Furthermore he was given over to the state of death, as his fellowship with God was severed. He was cast out of the garden of God and the way to the tree of life was blocked, and this certainly symbolized this reality. Death is not only an event, but a state of being.

Thirdly, we should remember that this is how the scriptures consistently speak concerning life and death. Take for example Paul’s words Christians in Ephesus: “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—” (Ephesians 2:1–2, ESV). Paul, writing to people who were alive physically and alive spiritually in Christ reminded them of the how they used to be “dead in the trespasses and sins” before they came to faith in Christ. They, at one time were alive according to the flesh, and yet in a state of death according to the spirit.

He wrote to the Colossians in a similar way: “And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses…” (Colossians 2:13, ESV)

This is a most basic doctrine of the holy scriptures. When thinking of life and death our greatest concern should be spiritual life and death, eternal life and death. Though we are most naturally concerned for the well being of the body, we ought to be more concerned for the soul.

That is precisely what Jesus is concerned with here in this most beautiful passage. He is concerned with providing for the soul of man. He is, relatively speaking, uninterested in ministering to the body apart from the soul.

Transition 

I struggled a bit to know how to organize this passage into sermon form. Some passages lend themselves to a verse-by-verse exposition. This one resisted that approach. I think the reason is that it is repetitive. The same basic thing is said over and again but in different ways and with greater intensity as the passage progresses.

So instead of considering vs. 49, 50, and so on, we will ask three questions and find the answers in the text as a whole.

The important thing to notice here is that this passages (vs. 49-59) is essentially and elaboration upon what has already been said in vs. 35 and 47- 48.

Vs. 35: “Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” (John 6:35, ESV)

Vs. 47-48: “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life.” (John 6:47–48, ESV)

This passage elaborates upon the claim that Jesus is the bread of life. Jesus elaborates, though, using highly metaphorical or symbolic language.

In the preceding passage Jesus presented this teaching in straightforward, mater-of-fact sort of way. I am the bread of life. Come to me. Believe in me. Those who come will never be cast out. I will raise them up on the last day. 

Here Jesus uses strong imagery. In fact, he uses the kind of imagery that, instead of appealing to his audience, would prove appalling to them. He talks about people needing to eat his flesh and drink his blood. This would have been most offensive to his Jewish audience, given that the law strictly forbid the drinking of blood, or the eating of flesh with the blood in it.

So why did he move from speaking in a plain way, to the use of startling metaphor? Two things may be said:

One, his use of startling metaphor was a kind of judgment upon his unbelieving audience. They would not receive his clear and straightforward teaching, and so he speaks now in metaphor – in symbols. Jesus used parables in the same way, as you know. Luke 8:10: “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God, but for others they are in parables, so that ‘seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.’” (Luke 8:10, ESV)

Two, although the metaphorical language in this passage has a negative effect upon the unbelieving, it has an illuminating effect upon the those who believe – those given to the Son by the Father – those drawn to the Son by the Father.  The metaphorical, symbolic, speech of Jesus here brings a depth and detail, contour and sharpness to Jesus’ most direct word’s, “whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” (John 6:35, ESV)

I would like to ask three questions of this text that I think will help us to wrap our minds around all that Jesus is saying here.

What is Jesus Offering?

Q: The first question is, what is it that Jesus is offering here?

A: The answer is that he offers life eternal. 

Jesus’ audience has made it unmistakably clear that what they wanted was for Jesus to do what Moses did. They want another Moses – Moses 2.0. The want to see a repeat of the Exodus event. Moses delivered from Egypt, they wanted to be delivered from Rome. Moses fed them in the wilderness with manna from above and water from the rock, they wanted to be feed by Christ with bread, not once, but again and again. They were willing to follow Jesus so long as he would do what they wanted him to do, and be what they wanted him to be.

Jesus here insists that their exceptions of him were much to small. Their thoughts were misdirected. Their vision for the coming prophet, priest and king, to little, to temporal, to worldly.

In verse 49 Jesus says, “Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died.” (John 6:49, ESV) Talk about being blunt! But Jesus’ point is an important one. He is saying, as good and incredible as the manna from above was, it was limited in what it could accomplish. It could sustain life for a time, but it could not deliver from death. It could not deliver from physical death, and certainly it could not deliver from spiritual death. The manna that was given by God ad through Moses, though good, was certainly limited.

Jesus offers more.

Verse 50: “This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”” (John 6:50–51, ESV)

Jesus offers life eternal.

But what does that mean exactly? What are the characteristics or qualities of this eternal life offered by Jesus? What does it mean to have the eternal life that is found in him?

First of all, notice that Christ is not claiming to save from physical death. Death is the door through which all must pass from this life to the next. I can think of only to exceptions: Enoch, who “walked with God, and he was not, for God took him” (Genesis 5:24, ESV), and those who are alive when the Lord returns. Except for those exceptions, all pass through the door of death. Christ does not claim to deliver from that!

Notice verse 54: “Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” (John 6:54, ESV) The phrase, “and I will raise him up on the last day” is what I want to draw your attention to here. This is a reference to the resurrection of the body when Christ comes again. Notice that the resurrection of the dead takes place on the last day. The last day is the day when Christ comes to judge the world and to usher in the final state – the new heavens and the new earth.

We do not have the time here to discuss the end times in detail – it’s not the point of the text. Two things should be noticed though. One, when Christ offers eternal life we should think, in part, of life lived eternally in resurrected, raised up, physical bodies – bodies, much like the body of our Lord in his resurrection. Two, if it is true that Christ will raise us up on the last day, it must also be true that physical death is inevitable. In other words, Christ is not promising here to save from physical death, but from spiritual death.

“I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:50–57, ESV)

The second thing that we should notice about the eternal life offered by Christ is that it is something we experience in the here and now, and not only in the future.

Notice verse 53: “So Jesus said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.’” (John 6:53, ESV)

This is an interesting thing for Jesus to say to group of people standing before him, living and breathing. “Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have [present tense] no life in you.” 

It is not, you will have no life in you (in the future), but you have no life in you now. They were alive, and yet they were dead. Eternal life and eternal death, you see, are not merely future realities. They are states of being that we experience in the here and now.

Verse 54 says positively what verse 53 said negatively: “Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” (John 6:54, ESV) Again, notice that “has” is present tense. It is true that the eternal life offered by Christ effects the future – those in Christ will be raised up bodily and reunited with their souls, which have always been alive in Christ, united with and seated with in him the heavenly places – but this eternal life offered by Christ is experience by those who believe in the here and now. To believe in Christ truly is pass from death to life.

This has already been stated in John’s gospel in 5:25: “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.” (John 5:24, ESV)

John repeats this principle in his epistle. 1 John 3:14: “We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death.” (1 John 3:14, ESV)

Death, you see, is not merely a future event, it is a state of being. So also with eternal life. It is not merely a future benefit for the believer, but a current state. To have eternal life in Christ Jesus is to have it now.

Of course we look forward to Christ’s return. We long for the day when all things will be made new – sin and death and misery will be no more – we long for that day when Christ will bring all things to a grand and glorious conclusion. But for the believer, eternal life is something we taste now.

We have been given a foretaste of it though the outpouring of the Spirit, by the forgiveness of sins, though knowing the the love of God, and by experiencing fellowship with God through union with Christ.

“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” (Ephesians 2:4–7, ESV)

What we had and then lost in the garden has been restored in Christ – fellowship with the God who made us. This is, in part, what it means to have life eternal in the here and now while we wait for the consummation of all things.

The third thing to noticed about the life offered by Christ is that it is in fact eternal life. It is life unending – life without end – life without the threat or possibility of death.

And so while it is true that those in Christ are alive now by the Spirit and have tasted of life eternal, it must also be emphasized that eternal life will not be experienced in it’s fullest sense until we experience it in the resurrection, after the return of Christ, when all things are made new. It is then that eternal life will be experienced in the fullest sense. It is then that we will live forever and ever, body and soul.

Tell me, does that sound good to you? Does it sound good to you to go on living forever and ever?

Some would say no. Some would say that that sounds like the most miserable thing of all, to go on living forever.

Those who view everlasting life as a negative and miserable thing misunderstand the quality of life promised in Christ Jesus. The life that Christ offers is life in it’s highest form. It is life without sin, sickness and death. It is life without conflict and strife. It is, perhaps most importantly, life without any separation whatsoever from the God who made us.

Listen to how eternal life is described to us in the Book of Revelation:

Verse 21:1-4: “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.’” (Revelation 21:1–4, ESV)

So Christ offers life eternal – life everlasting. Those in Christ have a foretaste of it in the here and now having passed from a state of death to a state of life. Physical death still threatens, but for those in Christ Jesus it has lost its sting. This is what Jesus offers..

How Can He Possibly Provide It?

Q: The next question that must be asked is how can he possibly provide such a magnificent thing?

A: The answer is that he can provide it because he is the bread of life.

“I am the bread of life.” (John 6:48, ESV)

“This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”” (John 6:50–51, ESV)

“Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.” (John 6:54–55, ESV)

This is obviously metaphorical, or symbolic, language. Jesus is not really bread, of course.

Here is the meaning of it. Just as physical bread possesses the qualities and characteristics necessary to impart physical life, so too the person of Jesus Christ possesses the qualities and characteristics necessary to impart spiritual life.

There is a reason why we eat bread and not tree bark. The obvious reason, besides the taste of the it, is that bread, given it’s nature and makeup, is able to nourish the body, whereas tree bark is not. The physical makeup of bread corresponds to the physical needs of the body.

And similarly there is a reason why Jesus can offer eternal life as no other person or thing can. Only he, the God-man, was and is capable in imparting it to us. Only he, having come from above, can provide life from above. Only he corresponds to the need of the human soul.

He is bread come down from heaven (vs. 50)

He is living bread (vs. 51)

His flesh is true food. His blood true drink. (vs. 55)

And it is in this last phrase that we are told how it is that he will provide eternal life. He will provide it through the giving of his flesh and the shedding of his own blood.

The event of the cross is what is in view here. Jesus Christ would give himself up for the sins of those who believe. His body would be broken, his blood spilt. It would be through this act of selfless sacrifice that he would provide eternal life for all who would believe.

He, being fully man, lived as man should live. He obeyed God completely. He kept God’s law. And he, being fully God, had the ability – the power – to take upon himself the sins of those who trust in him from all the world, and to atone for those sins by dying and raising again the third day.

Jesus Christ is the bread of life, the living bread, true food and true drink, because he is from above. He was no ordinary man.

Were he an ordinary man, it would do no good to believe in him. To trust in an ordinary man for eternal life would be like eating bark or rocks or dirt for the nourishment of the body. I suppose you could do it, but it would not benefit you in the end, because these things are not suited to for the task.

How can Jesus Christ provide eternal life? He can provide it because he was and is God come in in the flesh. He made atonement for sins through his broken body and blood spilt.

How Do We Receive It?

Q:  The last question is this, how do we receive this offer of his?

A: The answer is that we receive eternal life by eating with the mouth of faith.

Verse 51: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”” (John 6:51, ESV)

This is a metaphorical, or symbolic, way of saying what has already been said in a most straightforward way in the preceding passage.

Verse 35: “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” (John 6:35, ESV)

Verse 40: “For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” (John 6:40, ESV)

Verse 47: “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life.” (John 6:47, ESV)

So, to eat of Christ is to believe in him, to trust in him, to have faith in him.

Just as the mouth is the instrument by which we receives food to the nourishment of the body, so too faith is the instrument by which a person receives the benefits of Christ’s atoning sacrifice.

We are compelled here to eat of Christ.

It’s important to notice in verse 51 that the word “eats” is in the aorist tense in the greek, meaning that the eating is described as a snapshot, one time event. We are to eat of Christ. That is, we are to believe in him. And notice that, according to verse 51, “If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. “ (John 6:51, ESV) The same can be said of verse 50, and 53.  The eating is described as a particular event.

The meaning is this: we receive eternal life the moment we believe, the moment that we eat with the mouth of faith.

But notice this, as we continue to read we come to verse 54 where the word used to describe the eating of Christ changes, as does the tense in the greek.

Verse 54: “Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” (John 6:54, ESV)

Verse 56: “Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him.” (John 6:56, ESV)

Verse 57: “As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me.” (John 6:57, ESV)

Verse 58: “This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” (John 6:58, ESV)

Instead of the word “eats” we see the word “feeds”.  And here is the significant thing – instead of the aorist tense, which describes an event as a snapshot, one time event, we have the present tense used which communicates ongoing activity.

The meaning is this: We do indeed have eternal life the moment that we believe (aorist tense; eat). But to believe in Christ truly, is to feed upon him perpetually (present tense; feed).

In other words, the faith of true Christian has more in common with the steady and consistent grazing of cattle than the feeding frenzy of a pride of lions.

It is true, we have eternal life the moment we believe, but true faith is an abiding faith – an ongoing and consistent trust in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Application and Conclusion

May I make some brief suggestions for application before we close?

The first is most obvious. I would urge you to think deeply and seriously about life and death.

Having thought about life and death I would then urge you to believe (trust) in Christ from the heart.

Having believed in Christ from the heart I would then urge you to go on trusting in Christ in from the heart.

Consider the relation of the Lord’s Supper to al that is said in John 6. The Lord’s Supper signifies the spiritual reality that John 6 describes. Do not neglect the the Lord’s Supper. Do not approach the table in an unworthy manner. Christ is feeds his people through the Supper and is spiritually present in it.

Lastly, may I exhort you to savor God through Christ Jesus. Perhaps you have lost your taste for him. It is time to repent and to feed upon him once more.

Sermon Audio

Reading of God’s Word

“So the Jews grumbled about him, because he said, ‘I am the bread that came down from heaven.’ They said, ‘Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?’ Jesus answered them, ‘Do not grumble among yourselves. No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me— not that anyone has seen the Father except he who is from God; he has seen the Father. Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life.” (John 6:41–48, ESV)

Introduction

Our family as been reading, rather slowly, through C.S. Lewis’, The Chronicles of Narnia. We get to it once or twice a week, and we are currently in the middle of the second book in the series called, The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe.  This is the one that was made into a motion picture a number of years ago – perhaps you’ve seen it.

I would imagine that most of you are somewhat familiar with Lewis’ work. These books are, of course, fictional.  But they are filled with Christian symbolism. It’s hard to miss, I think.

In this particular book there are four children: Peter, Susan, Lucy, and Edmond. They are staying at a large home in the countryside and come upon a wardrobe which leads into another world. It is a frozen world with talking fawns and beavers, dwarfs, and great white witch.

I obviously will not take the time to tell the whole story, but I do want want to say a word about the way that Lewis develops his characters.

It it obvious, at least at this point in the story, that there is division that exists between the children.  Peter, Susan and Lucy seem to be of a particular spirit – they are generally nice children. But Edmond seems to be of another kind. He is portrayed as being rather nasty. He lies to the others. He is cruel to his younger sister, Lucy. He seems to look out only for himself.

Edmond’s wickedness is apparent, not only because of the way that he treats his siblings, but also because of the things that his heart is drawn to – the things he loves.

All of the children have, at this point in the story, encountered the witch, either by meeting her face to face or hearing about her from others. The three are of the opinion that she is indeed wicked and to be avoided and feared. But Edmond is drawn to her. He insists that she is not really bad, as all of the creatures in Narnia say.

Consider also that when the name Aslan is mentioned for the first time – Aslan being the one who will represent God in this story – we are told that,

“a very curious thing happened. None of the children knew who Aslan was any more than you do; but the moment that the Beaver had spoken these words everyone felt quite different… At the name of Aslan each one of the children felt something jump in its inside… Peter felt suddenly brave and adventurous. Susan felt as if some delicious smell or some delightful strain of music had just floated by her. And Lucy got the feeling you have when you wake up in the morning and realize that it is the beginning of the holidays or the beginning of summer.”

But Edmond felt something different. We are told that, at the name of Aslan, he “felt a sensation of mysterious horror.”

Edmond, at this point in the story, is portrayed as a cruel young man. He is rather fond of the witch. And the name of Aslan fills him with dread.

But there is one other thing to notice about Edmond as it pertains to our study of John 6 today.

Edmond is portrayed as sensual young man. By that I mean he is driven and controlled by his senses. He seems to live for fleshly, worldly, pleasures.

When he first met the witch she acted in a most cunning way. She asked the boy if he was hungry. Of course he was. He was wandering in a frozen wilderness. She asked him if would like something to eat. His food of choice, as it is for most children, was a dessert – he asked for Turkish Delight. And so she gave him a whole cake, several pounds worth. The more he ate the more he wanted. It was the best thing he had ever tasted! He ate the whole thing.  When it was gone, he desperately wanted more. But the witch would not give it.

She promised that if he would go and get his siblings and bring them to her house she would give him more. She spoke to Edmond saying,

“It is a lovely place, my house… There are whole rooms full of Turkish Delight, and what’s more, I have no children of my own. I want a nice boy who I could bring up as a Prince and who would be King of Narnia when I’m gone. While he was Prince he would wear a gold crown and eat Turkish Delight all day long.”

Your are beginning to wonder what this has to do with John 6.

I actually hope that it is clear.

The way that Lewis describes his characters in this wonderful little story is not all that different from the way that the crowd of John 6 is described.

The multitude of men and women following after Jesus in the wilderness seems to have much in common with this boy, Edmond.

They too are sensual. They want more bread! They want power and prestige!

Instead of being drawn to the name of the Eternal Son of God, the true and heavenly bread given by the Father, they are offended by him. They find his words repulsive.

We are beginning to see in John’s gospel that Jesus is a divisive figure. Some are drawn to him, but others find him offensive. By the end of John 6 we see clearly that, not only do some reject him – most do.

“When many of his disciples heard it, they said, ‘This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?’” (John 6:60, ESV)

“After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him.” (John 6:66, ESV)

The question that looms large as we consider this narrative is this: Why do these not come? Why do the majority of these men and women remain in their unbelief?

This passage gives a most direct answer to that question. The answer, to borrow the language used in Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus in John 3, is that those who reject Jesus have been born of the flesh only, and not of the Spirit of God.

Verses 41-42: they have been born of the flesh 

That they have been born of the flesh only is evident as we consider verses 41-42.

Vs. 41: “So the Jews grumbled about him, because he said, ‘I am the bread that came down from heaven.’ They said, ‘Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” (John 6:41–42, ESV)

It is obvious that they have been born of the flesh in that they are living and breathing. This is what it means to be born of the flesh. All who are born into this world are born of the flesh.

And what to the scriptures tell us about the condition of all those born according to the flesh?

“What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” “Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive.” “The venom of asps is under their lips.” “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.” “Their feet are swift to shed blood; in their paths are ruin and misery, and the way of peace they have not known.” “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”” (Romans 3:9–18, ESV)

That they have been born of the flesh only is evident given the way that they respond to the gospel of Jesus Christ.

How do they respond?

They grumbled because he claimed to be bread that came down from heaven.

They could understood his human origin, but could not comprehend his divine origin.

They grumbled. This should remind us of the people of Israel as they wandered in the wilderness under Moses.

“All the congregation of the people of Israel moved on from the wilderness of Sin by stages, according to the commandment of the Lord, and camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. Therefore the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water to drink.” And Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?” But the people thirsted there for water, and the people grumbled against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?”” (Exodus 17:1–3, ESV)

“Then all the congregation raised a loud cry, and the people wept that night. And all the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The whole congregation said to them, “Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness! Why is the Lord bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become a prey. Would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?”” (Numbers 14:1–3, ESV)

“And the Lord spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, “How long shall this wicked congregation grumble against me? I have heard the grumblings of the people of Israel, which they grumble against me.” (Numbers 14:26–27, ESV)

Just as many in Israel who were under the Old Covenant did not have faith, but grumbled, so to this multitude, though they were externally following Jesus, did not believe in him from the heart.

Paul hones in upon this same principle and makes application for us.

“For I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ. Nevertheless, with most of them God was not pleased, for they were overthrown in the wilderness. Now these things took place as examples for us, that we might not desire evil as they did. Do not be idolaters as some of them were; as it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.” We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day. We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did and were destroyed by serpents, nor grumble, as some of them did and were destroyed by the Destroyer. Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come.” (1 Corinthians 10:1–11, ESV)

Verses 43-46: they have not been born of the Spirit

That they have not been born of the Spirit is clear from Verses 43-46.

Listen to Jesus’ words concerning them.

Vs. 43: “Jesus answered them, ‘Do not grumble among yourselves.’” (John 6:43, ESV)

D.A. Carson:  “The grumbling was not only insulting, but dangerous: it presupposed that divine revelation could be sorted out by talking the matter over, and thus diverted attention from the grace of God. ‘So long as a man remains, and is content to remain, confident of his own ability, without divine help, to assess experience and the meaning of experience, he cannot “come to” the Lord, he cannot “believe”; only the Father can move him to this step, with its incalculable and final results’ (Lightfoot, pp. 160–161)”.

Do not grumble amongst yourselves. It will do no good.

Vs. 44a:“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.” (John 6:44a, ESV)

What needs to happen in order for these people (or anyone, for that matter) to come to Christ and to believe in his name is for the Father to draw them to the Son.

Remember that a connected idea has already been communicated in verse 37: “All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.” (John 6:37, ESV)

So we have already been told, in positive terms, that everyone given to the Son by the Father will come to faith in Christ. And everyone who comes to faith in Christ will certainly be saved – none will be lost.

Here the idea is stated in a negative way: “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him…” (John 6:44a, ESV)

The teaching is that no one is able to come to Christ unless the Father draws that person to Christ.

To state it another way, it is impossible for someone to believe in Christ, to trust in him for salvation, unless the Father has given that person to the Son, and draws that person to Christ.

The word translated “draws” is really quite strong. It’s basic meaning is this: “to pull or drag, requiring force because of the inertia of the object being dragged—‘to pull, to drag, to draw.’” (Louw Nida 15.212)

It appears six times in the New Testament, five of those occurrences being in John. Bedside this passage it also appears in:

John 12:32: “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people [all the peoples of the earth – Jew and Gentile] to myself.” (John 12:32, ESV)

John 21:6: “He said to them, ‘Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.’ So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in, because of the quantity of fish.” (John 21:6, ESV)

John 21:11: “So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, 153 of them. And although there were so many, the net was not torn.” (John 21:11, ESV)

John 18:10: “Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant and cut off his right ear. (The servant’s name was Malchus.)” (John 18:10, ESV)

Act 16:19: “But when her owners saw that their hope of gain was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the rulers.” (Acts 16:19, ESV)

The word is rather strong, then. It speaks of the need of God the Father to effectively bring sinners to faith in the Son. Without that drawing, wooing, effective calling – whatever you want to call it – no one will be saved.

As you know many professing Christians struggle with this teaching. They claim that it is unfair and unjust for God choose some our of the world for salvation. Their opinion is flawed for a number of reasons.

One, they have thrust upon God their opinion concerning what is right and wrong for him to do.

Two, they have underestimated the severity of our sin. We cannot say that we deserve God’s love and mercy. He would be right and just to judge all. In his mercy and grace he has determined to save some.

Three, the teaching of election is just to clear in the scriptures. It is clear in this passage that God has given some to the Son. Those given to the Son will come and be raised up on the last day. And they will come as the Father draws them to the Son, and thus to himself.

Notice that this is a not a drawing that everyone experiences. Were it something that everyone experience, then everyone would be saved given that it is perfectly effective. According to verse 44, those drawn by the Father are certainly raised up on the last day.

We are not told exactly how the Father goes about drawing people to himself in this passage. The rest of John makes it clear, though. The rest of John is clear that it is the Holy Spirit who draws.

That is what Jesus said to Nicodemus. John 3:3, 5-7:

“Jesus answered him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God…’ ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’” (John 3:5–7, ESV)

This is what Jesus says later in the gospel. John 16:7–8:

“Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment:” (John 16:7–8, ESV)

And it is in the following passage as well.

“It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all…” (John 6:63a, ESV)

The drawing of the Father is done through the power of the Holy Spirit.

In verse 45 Jesus shows that this was promised from long ago.

Vs. 45a: “It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ (John 6:45a, ESV)

This is a quotation from Isaiah 54:13. Here that prophet speaks of day when all of the children of God will be taught by God. This is important for a number of reasons.

One, it tells something about how the Father draws sinners to himself. He teaches them. Sinners are brought to faith in the Son through the proclamation of the gospel, through the teaching of the word. The Spirit of God himself opens blind eyes and enlivens dead hearts so that the word of God might be received. God draws us to himself through teaching us his words.

Two, this quotation from Isaiah 54 is significant in that it brings to remembrance the promise from long ago that the day was coming where all of the covenant people of God would know God and be taught by him. You see, although the Old and New Covenants are indeed connected, there are also differences. One of the major differences is both believers and non-believers were rightly said to a part of the Old Covenant. Jacob and Esau were both under the Old Covenant. They were both circumcised, and rightly so. But God loved Jacob and hated Esau. As we consider the multitude that followed Moses out of Egypt and into the wilderness we would have to say that, though some believed, many did not – they grumbled and complained against God – but all of them were under the Old Covenant. The males received the sign of the covenant, circumcision, and rightly so. They were apart of the covenant community even if they did not believe – many were circumcised according to the flesh, but not according to the heart.

Jesus is here saying that the time has come, just as Isaiah had promised, where all of the children of God would know him truly and from the heart. It is those who believe in Christ who are apart of the New Covenant, made in Christ’s blood. This is why we give the sign of the covenant – baptism – to those who believe, and not to our children as they did with circumcision under the Old Covenant.

Three, this quotation from Isaiah 54 helps us to understand why Jesus sent these men and woman away. Think of it! Jesus and Moses are compared with one another throughout this text. Moses put up with the grumbling and unbelieving multitude there in the wilderness. They were allowed to go on eating the physical bread, though many who ate did not believe. They drank from the rock with hearts of unbelief. The nation of Israel was preserved through them so that the Christ might come. But now that he has come, Christ does not receive these unbelieving ones as apart of the covenant community, but rather he sends them away. “Jesus answered them, ‘Do not grumble among yourselves. No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me—” (John 6:43–45, ESV)

Notice the confidence of Jesus in verse 45:

Vs. 45b: “Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me—” (John 6:45b, ESV)

The gospel has been preached to the multitude. The free offer of the gospel has been given, Jesus has said to them again and again – come to me, believe, partake, eat, drink, be satisfied. He has said this, not to a few, but to all. And now he confidently says, “Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me—” (John 6:45b, ESV)

All have heard the gospel with their physical ears. Is is those who hear the voice of the Father in those words by the power of the Holy Spirit who will come.

This is what Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 2:!4: “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:14, ESV)

And then in verse 46 we read these words:

Vs. 46: “not that anyone has seen the Father except he who is from God; he has seen the Father.” (John 6:46, ESV)

Some have been puzzled concerning the meaning of this verse. I think it is important. There has been all of this talk of the Father drawing people, the Father teaching people. Here it is clarified that the Father is in fact drawing and teaching through the Son. It is Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God who comes from God, having seen God as he is, and therefore, Jesus Christ is uniquely qualified to reveal the Father to us. The Father draws through the Son and by the Spirit.

So what have we learned so far?

As Jesus interacts with this crowd he teaches that some have been given by the Father to the Son. They will come to him. They will believe in him. They will by no means be lost. They will be drawn to faith in the Son, by the Father, through the word of the Son, and by the power of the Holy Spirit. They will be raised up on the last day.

This is doctrine of election, or predestination. The is the doctrine of irresistible grace. This is the doctrine of the perseverance, or preservation of the saints. It is here in no uncertain terms.

I find it interesting that one of the complaints that I often hear from those who deny the doctrine of predestination is that the doctrine has a way of killing evangelism. The rational is that if some are predestined by the Father, and if they will indeed come, then why preach?

Tell me, what do you notice about this entire dialogue between Jesus and crowd as it pertains to evangelism, or the free offer of the gospel? What is Jesus constantly urging people to do? He is urging them to believe! He is offering the gospel freely! He is saying, come to me, partake, believe.

Verses 47-48: Notice that Jesus still offers himself freely in the gospel

Notice in verses 47-48 that Jesus still offers himself freely in the gospel.

“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life.” (John 6:47–48, ESV)

From beginning to end Jesus is compelling the crowd to come, to believe, to have faith in him. He offers himself to them as the bread of life. He pleads them with to partake.

This makes it clear that a biblical understanding of the doctrine election is by no means opposed to the free offer of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Christ himself is our model. He, in the same dialogue, managed to do both. He taught that some were given to him by the Father, and also continuously compelled the crowds to come.

Application and Conclusion

Present the gospel freely.

Pray for the lost and for your own soul.

Are you ruled by the flesh or the Spirit? Walk by the Spirit.

Reading of God’s Word

“On the next day the crowd that remained on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. Other boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum, seeking Jesus. When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, ‘Rabbi, when did you come here?’ Jesus answered them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.’ Then they said to him, ‘What must we do, to be doing the works of God?’ Jesus answered them, ‘This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.’ So they said to him, ‘Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ’ Jesus then said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.’ They said to him, ‘Sir, give us this bread always.’ Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.’” (John 6:22–40, ESV)

Introduction

John 6 follows the same pattern as John 5. Both chapters present, first of all, a story of a miracle preformed by Jesus followed by extensive teaching from Jesus which explains the true significance of the miracle that was preformed.

In John 5 the sign was the healing of the invalid; the significance was that Jesus has life in himself. Men and women were urged to look to Jesus for eternal life.

In John 6 the sign was the multiplication of the bread and the fish. The significance, as we will see, is that Jesus is the bread of life. Men and women will be urged to partake of him by faith in order to have eternal life – in order to be eternally satisfied.

John 6:1-21 tells of the sign. 6:22-71 reveals the significance of the sign. The structure of 22-71 is really simple. Verses 22-24 are traditional as we are told of the movement of the crowd form the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee up to Capernaum, located on the northwestern shore of the sea. Once there were hear of a back-and-fourth between Jesus and the Jews. They ask a question, and he answers. This repeats six times before they go their way. Jesus then asks his own disciples a question, and they respond in 60-71. So what we have is a dialogue between Jesus and the Jews, followed by a dialogue between Jesus and his own disciples. There is much to learn from this dialogue.

Let me state briefly my plans for John 6:22-71. Today we will consider 6:22-40. Lord willing, we will consider 6:41-59 next Sunday, and then 6:60-71 the Sunday after that. These three sermons will be exegetical in nature, meaning that we will consider the text rather methodically, verse by verse. After that I plan to devote one sermon to the doctrine of salvation asking the question, how does John 6 contribute to our understanding of the salvation of man? That sermon will be topical or theological in nature.

This particular passage (6:22-40) is divided into three parts. Verses 22-25 contain transitional material, as I have already said. In verses 26-36 we will observe Jesus’ most penetrating assessment of, and appeal to, the will of man. And in verses 37-40 we are exposed to Jesus’ most revealing statement concerning the will of the Father and the Son. This passage is indeed revealing. It is penetrating. It gets to the heart of the issue, if you will, laying bare deep and hidden truths concerning the heart of man and the heart of God.

Verses 22-25: Transitional Material – The Zealous Pursue Jesus

Let’s consider briefly the transitional material found in 6:22-25.

I do not want to linger here to long. In a way the passage is utterly simple. The people were eager to meet with Jesus after he had fed them with the bread and fish, but he is nowhere to be found. They saw his disciples leave in the boat, but Jesus was not with them. In verse 23 we are told that, “Other boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks.” Some have taken this to mean that these boats were blown to the eastern shore by the storm that almost ruined the disciples the night before. This is entirely possible, but uncertain.

At any rate, the crowed that remained got into the boats and headed to Capernaum. We are not told how many of the 5,000 remained and made the journey. It would seem that there was still a good number, for they are still called a crowd, but not all of the 5,000 were still present. Some had gone home.

The crowd that remained chose to go to Capernaum because this was Jesus’ home town and base of operations at this point. If they were to find him, this would be the most likely place.

If anything beyond the historical details is to be gleaned from 22-25 it is this: These people were serious about finding Jesus. They had walked deep into the wilderness, and now they were traveling by sea to find him. They were far from half-hearted and apathetic in their pursuit of the man. They would rightly be called zealous for Jesus.

Vs. 25: “When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, ‘Rabbi, when did you come here?’” (John 6:25, ESV)

This is their leading question for him. They are curious how he had made the journey so quickly given that he did not leave with his disciples. You would think that this would be a perfect opportunity for Jesus and his disciples to tell of his having walked upon the water and his bringing of his disciples safely to shore after the storm had threatened them in that most terrifying way, but he does no such thing. The reason, I think, is that for some, miracles are in fact a hindrance to true faith, instead of an aid to it. This will prove to be true for these as they are the type who are more concerned with the signs themselves than the significance of the signs.

Verses 26-36: A Most Penetrating Assessment of and Appeal to the Will of Man

What follows is a most penetrating assessment of, and appeal to, the will of man.

He saw through their superficial and misdirected faith and called them to task on it.

Vs. 26: “Jesus answered them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves.’” (John 6:26, ESV)

Notice that he does not even answer their question. They come to him saying, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” This should remind us of the way that Nicodemus approached Jesus in 3:2. He approached him saying, “Rabbi…” after which he made a statement (which was really a question, I think). And Jesus responded to Nicodemus in the same way that he responded to these! He brushed aside the initial statement and addressed the heart of the man. Here he addresses the heart of the crowed. He calls them to task.

“Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves.” (John 6:26, ESV)

This seems to, at first, contradict what was said in 6:14. There we are told that “When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, ‘This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!’” (John 6:14, ESV) And so the people did see the sign. And having witnessed the sign they came to confess that Jesus was the Prophet who was to come into the world. This was all good and correct.

What Jesus is criticizing here is that the crowed saw the sign, but failed to perceive the true significance of the sign.  They saw the sign – they witnessed he multiplication of the bread and fish – but they did not see the sign, really and truly. They did not comprehend, or perceive, the truth signified by the miracle preformed.

They wanted more bread. They want a second Moses. They want an earthly King.  They want a free and reestablished Israel.

These people were worldly and fleshly, thinking in mere human terms. They were failing to grasp the spiritual, heavenly, and eternal significance of Christ’s works.

And so Jesus responded, saying,

Vs. 27: “Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.” (John 6:27, ESV)

Jesus offered the woman at the well living water – “Jesus said to her, ‘Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.’” (John 4:13–14, ESV). 

Jesus offers these food that endures. 

The water of the world cannot satisfy permanently. It cannot provide eternal life.  You drink of it, and you must drink again.  The same is true of bread. It cannot provide eternal life. You eat of it, and you grow hungry again. The bread of this world perishes. It grows stale. It molds and rots. It perishes in that when we eat of it we grow hungry and must eat again.

You are beginning to see this consistent theme in John, that he is again and again persuading us to see beyond the stuff of this world – to lift up our eyes that we might see that Christ has come to to give eternal life, to bring eternal satisfaction, to establish an eternal kingdom. And yet man in his natural state is unable to discern these spiritual truths.

Vs. 28: “Then they said to him, ‘What must we do, to be doing the works of God?’” (John 6:28, ESV)

This question is understandable. Jesus has just said, “Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life…” and now they want to know what work is required – what they must do to have eternal life.

Vs. 29: “Jesus answered them, ‘This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”” (John 6:29, ESV)

Here is what God requires – that men and women believe in Christ.

This would have been a most surprising response. The Jews who asked the question, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?”, undoubtably expected to hear, keep this law, or do this thing, but instead Jesus says,  this is the work that God requires, that you believe in the Son whom he has sent. 

Belief is the way that men and women are to partake of the food which endures to eternal. We partake of earthly food by way of the mouth and digestive system. We partake of the bread of life by the instrument of faith.

To believe in Christ is to know what is true concerning him. To believe in Christ is to confess that those things are indeed true. To believe in Christ is to trust in him, confessing that no good thing exists within us that could possibly earn eternal life, but that life eternal is found in him alone.

This is “work” that God requires, that men and women believe in the one whom Christ has sent.

Vs. 30-31: “So they said to him, ‘Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” (John 6:30–31, ESV)

Two things are made clear by this request.

One, these men and women will never be satisfied with signs.

They will go on forever wanting to see more and more. They had witnessed Jesus’ multiplication of the bread and the fish, and they had witnessed who-knows-how-many signs before that, and yet it was not enough. “…what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform?” Give us more, and more, and more. No sign – no proof – no matter how spectacular will be enough to open their their blind eyes and awaken their dead hearts.

Two, these men and women cannot comprehend the difference between Moses and Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

They are correct to make the connection between the two. Jesus was the Prophet promised from long ago. He was the one like Moses who would arise from amongst the people – the one to whom the were to listen, according to Deuteronomy 18:18. They were correct to see the connection between the giving of manna in the wilderness under Moses and Jesus’ multiplication of the bread and fish. They were correct to make the connection between the two!

However, they failed to understand that Jesus was so much greater than Moses.

When they ask for another sign in verse 30, and go on to point out in verse 31, how their “fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat’”, they are urging Jesus to do the same thing that Moses did – that is to feed the people bread, not once, but perpetually.

Under Moses the people were given bread, not once, but daily. The people are are pursuing Jesus by land and sea urging him to feed them, not once, but time and again as Moses did.

They are right to see the connection between Moses and Jesus. They are wrong in that they have failed to recognize that Jesus is so much greater.

Here is how the writer to the Hebrews puts it:

“Therefore, holy brothers, you who share in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession, who was faithful to him who appointed him, just as Moses also was faithful in all God’s house. For Jesus has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses—as much more glory as the builder of a house has more honor than the house itself. (For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.) Now Moses was faithful in all God’s house as a servant, to testify to the things that were to be spoken later, but Christ is faithful over God’s house as a son. And we are his house if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope.” (Hebrews 3:1–6, ESV)

Jesus came, not feed the people with earthly bread, but to give them the bread of life from above.

He explains:

Vs. 32-33: “Jesus then said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.’” (John 6:32–33, ESV)

Three things are stated here:

One, the manna given to Israel in the wilderness did not come from Moses, but from God the Father. Moses was a servant in God’s house, a mediator. Though he was indeed significant, he was nothing more than that.

Two, the Father has always been concerned that the people eat, not only of the bread of this earth, but also of the true bread which comes from him alone – “my Father gives you the true bread from heaven”, Jesus says.

Three, Jesus is that true bread. He is “the bread of God… who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

Vs. 34: “They said to him, ‘Sir, give us this bread always.’” (John 6:34, ESV)

I see this, not as a legitimate declaration of faith, but as a sarcastic reply to the offer of bread from heaven. The woman at the well responded in the same way.

“‘…The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.’  The woman said to him [I think with a smirk and a chuckle], ‘Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water.’” (John 4:14–15, ESV) So too the people say, “Sir, give us this bread always.”

Vs. 35-36: “Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe.’” (John 6:35–36, ESV)

This is the first of the seven great “I AM” sayings of Jesus in John’s gospel.

“I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” (John 6:35 ESV)

“I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”” (John 8:12, ESV)

“I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.” (John 10:9, ESV)

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” (John 10:11, ESV)

“I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live,” (John 11:25, ESV)

“I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6, ESV)

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser.” (John 15:1, ESV)

The message is clear. What we have throughout John, and particularly here in this passage, is an appeal to the will of man. These men and women were looking to earthly, worldly, fleshly things for life. Jesus is calling them to look to him, to believe in him, to have faith in him. “…Whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” (John 6:35 ESV)

But look at Jesus’ assessment  of the will of man. “But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe.” (John 6:36, ESV)

Summery: 

And so verses 26-36 tell this story: A crowd has followed Jesus. We might even say that they were zealous for him, traveling by land and see to find him. But their motives were worldly, their hearts and minds set upon the things of this world. Jesus called them out. He condemned their worldliness and urged them to see him as the bread of life, the bread from heaven,  but they do not believe.

Verses 26-36 prove to be a most penetrating assessment of and appeal to the will of man.

Transition:

Let’s pause for a moment. We’ve been moving rather quickly through this text, considering each verse. But I would invite you to put yourself in the midst of this event as it happened. I think it would be particularly beneficial if we were to look at it through the eyes of the disciples of Christ. See it from their perspective.

They had left all to follow Jesus, who they believed to be the Messiah. Their understanding of the what the Messiah would be was still forming. This was relatively new to them. We know that they also tended to see things from a worldly perspective – it would seem that they too wanted a political Messiah, an earthly kingdom, and the fame that would naturally come with it. They saw the miracles. They even took part in feeding the multitude! They distributed the food and gathered up the fragments. They had been saved from certain doom by Jesus as walked across the sea and brought them safely to shore.

I would imagine that from their perspective – their worldly, human, and earthly perspective – things are going quite well. 5,000 men journeyed a great distance into the wilderness to be with Jesus. Many of those also pursued him all the way back to Capernaum. It would seem as if Jesus’ ministry is finally flourishing! He has at his disposal what amounts to a small army. But what does Jesus do? He does not receive these men. He rebukes them. Why? Because he unwilling to be their Christ, their Messiah, made in their own image.

Seeing this story from the perspective of the disciples helps to understand what follows.

Verses 37-40: A Most Revealing Statement Concerning the Will of the Father and the Son

What we have here in 37-40 is a most revealing statement concerning the will of the Father and the Son.

Christ gives us a glimpse into the purposes of God. Man has his purposes, and they are tainted with pride and selfish ambition. But God has his purposes. Jesus here reveals them to us. He makes the hidden purposes of God known.

Vs. 37: “All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.” (John 6:37, ESV)

Christ has just called this unbelieving crowd to come to him. Verse 35: “whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” There is here a general call to come to Jesus and partake.

In verse 37 we are told that, “all that the Father gives me will come to me…”

And so the principle of election is set forth: Some have been given by the Father to the Son. God the Father, in his infinite and unsearchable wisdom, has given some to the Son. We are not told who they are. We are not told how many. We are only told that from amongst the unbelieving masses, some have been given to the Son by the Father.

Furthermore we are told that “all that the Father gives [to the Son] will come to [him]…” And so not only is some particular group of people given by the Father to the Son, but it is guaranteed that those given will come. There is certainty concerning this. 

Beyond that we have this promise that, “whoever comes to [the Son] will never [be] cast out.”

Jesus has delivered this general call to the crowd – come to me, partake of me, believe in me. And now he reveals this, that it is those whom the Father has given to him who will believe in his name, and those who believe in his name will never be cast out.

How can this be? Jesus tells us in verse 38:

Vs. 38: “For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me.” (John 6:38, ESV)

This is a certain thing because it is the will of God. Christ came to do, not his own will, but the will of the Father. He came to accomplish the Fathers will established from eternity past.

Vs. 39-40: “And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” (John 6:39–40, ESV)

Here the will of the Father is stated in no uncertain terms. The reason why the Father has sent the Son is so that all whom the Father has given to him would be raised up on the last day. The will of the Father is that all who look to the Son and believe in him should have eternal life and be raised up on the last day.

The teaching is clear. Christ came to accomplish the Father will. The Fathers will is to redeem a particular people for himself from every tongue, tribe, and nation. These are the ones given to the Son by the Father from eternity past.

That was his mission – not to gather a a great multitude to himself in the wilderness – not to establish, or reestablish, a nation – not to feed men with bread – but to redeem, to save, to raise up a particular people – those given to him by the Father. That was his mission, according to John 38-40.

And how important it was for Jesus’ disciples to hear this. They, of all people, needed know what the mission of Christ was. They needed to have this settled in their minds so that they could walk faithfully with him while he was on earth, and so they could serve him faithfully after his death and resurrection.

If Jesus mission was to save all, or to gather a great following and establish an earthly kingdom, then he certainly failed. But if his mission was to pay for the sins of those given to him by the Father, to draw them to faith, and to raise them up on the last day, then we can say with complete certainly that his mission was accomplished. It is finished.

John 6 is one of those passages that gets to the heart of things. It moves us beyond the appearance of things.

From a human perspective this was the hight of Jesus’ ministry.

From the divine perspective this was nothing more than mob a of worldly, sensual, and idolatrous people eager to make God in their own image.

Application & Conclusion

Let’s apply this text briefly before we conclude.

Partake of Christ. I am to do the very thing that Christ did when speaking to the multitude, and that is to call you to faith in Christ.

If you are concerned only with worldly things, may I urge you to see that these things perish with time. They cannot give life.

If you are concerned about eternal things, yet looking to something or someone, other than Christ to save, may I urge you to look to Christ alone, to abandon all, confidence in the flesh, and to confess him as Savior and Lord.

If you have believed in Christ, may I urge to remain in him. Feast upon him perpetually!

Reading of God’s Word

“After this Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. And a large crowd was following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick. Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand. Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?” He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to get a little.” One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him, “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?” Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, about five thousand in number. Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted. And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.” So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten. When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!” Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself. When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened. But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.” (John 6:1–21, ESV)

Introduction

Do you like bread? I certainly do! One of my favorite things is to walk into the house after my wife has made a fresh loaf of bread. I love the smell of it. I love the way that it satisfies when you eat it. Bread is one of those very simple and yet wonderfully pleasing things.

But have you ever stopped to ask the question, what is bread for? Why is it here? Why do we have it?

On one level you may respond saying, well that’s a ridiculous question. Bread is food! It nourishes the body. It’s purpose is to sustain us, to strengthen us, to give us life. And that is true. Bread does indeed serve the physical body. But may I suggest to you that bread serves another more important purpose – a higher purpose. Bread serves, not only the body, but, in a way, it also serves the human soul. Read the rest of Sermon: John 6:1-21: Bread from Heaven »

Reading of God’s Word

John 5:31–47 (ESV)

31 If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not true. 32 There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true. 33 You sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth. 34 Not that the testimony that I receive is from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. 35 He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. 36 But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me. 37 And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me. His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen, 38 and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent. 39 You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, 40 yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life. 41 I do not receive glory from people. 42 But I know that you do not have the love of God within you. 43 I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not receive me. If another comes in his own name, you will receive him. 44 How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God? 45 Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope. 46 For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me. 47 But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?”

Introduction

I had an interesting conversation with a man this past week. He was in my home trying to sell me something and he soon asked, so what do you do for a living? I said, I’m a Pastor. He looked surprised and said, I would have never guessed that! I responded, well, I’m not exactly sure how to take that… (He was actually the second person in two weeks to say that to me – I’m thinking it’s the beard). But we ended up talking about Christ for some time. I would guess that an hour of the the hour and a half that he was in my home was devoted to conversation about Christ – it was really quite a nice conversation.

This man said that he had been studying the scriptures. His wife is a Jehovah’s Witness. And so the conversation eventually came to center upon the person of Jesus Christ as I asked the question, who is he? 

As you know Christians disagree with the Jehovah’s Witnesses on a number of points, but their view of the person of Christ seems to be most at odds with biblical Christianity, and therefore it is one of the easiest things to discuss in a relatively short period of time.

To state things briefly, this man seemed to be struggling with two things in particular.

One, he could not understand how the man Jesus Christ could be one with God the Father.

I emphasized two things in response to this. One, the fact that there were two natures – the divine and the human – united in the one person of Christ is difficult for anyone to comprehend – one should not deny a biblical doctrine because it hard for the human mind to comprehend.  Two, I emphasized the fact that the scriptures clearly teach this. The Father and the Son, though distinct in some way, are in fact one. They are of one essence – one substance.

We looked at John 1:1 – “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (John 1:1, ESV). We looked at it in the Greek text and compared it with his New World Translation, in which the Jehovah’s Witnesses have altered the wording to make room for their unorthodox doctrine.

I aslo alluded to John 14:9-11where Jesus speaks to Phillip, saying,

“Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.” (John 14:9–11, ESV)

We also spoke of the fact that the scriptures everywhere insist that there is only one God – not two, or three, or more.

I came across Mark 12:28-31 in my scripture reading this past week. It is that famous passage where the scribe asks Jesus what the most important commandment is. You and I know that Jesus emphasizes two things – the command to love God, and the command to love your neighbor as yourself. But what caught my attention is how Christ presents the command to love God. He quotes from Deuteronomy 6:4 saying, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength…” (Mark 12:29–30, ESV)

The point that I tried to make with him then, and the point I am making now, is that Jesus, though he certainly claimed to be God, was dogmatically monotheistic. He claimed to be God – divine – and yet according to him there was and is and will only ever be one God.  Therefore we have one God eternally existing in three subsistences or persons – Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

This has been the confession of the Church throughout the ages. The Nicene Creed, which I read to you last week, was penned, in part, to combat the heresy of Arianism. It’s worth noting that the Jehovah’s Witnesses are really nothing more than a modern resurgence of the Arian heresy when it comes to the doctrine of Christ.

The Jehovah’s Witness view of Christ can be summarized in this way:  

1. Jesus is to be called “a god” and not God. Thus, Jehovah’s Witnesses translate John 1: 1 “In the beginning the Word was, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god.”
2. While Jesus is worthy of honor, he is not to be worshiped. 
3. Jesus is a created being. He is not eternal in his preexistence but rather was created by Jehovah as Michael the Archangel.
4. Jesus did not rise physically from the grave. Rather, Jehovah raised his spirit from death and then provided another body for his appearances to his disciples. 
5. The second coming of Jesus took place in 1914, when Jesus returned invisibly to Earth.[SLIDE]

It’s no wonder this man was struggling to come to terms with the Biblical doctrine of the divinity of Christ, and with the Trinity with all of this in his background.

But remember that I said he was struggling with two things. The first was the deity of Christ. But I think there was deeper issue – a more foundational issue. He was struggling to know where to look to find answers to these questions. He was struggling with the question of authority.

This came up again and again. In his mind you have all of these opinions – all of these interpretations – and who are we to believe? Who is correct?

It was evident that this man was swimming in sea of subjectivity, and was struggling to stay afloat. It was a reminder that this world is a very uncertain and confusing place for those who have bought into the philosophy of relativism, that there is no truth, that it cannot be found. 

My response to this was simple. I said that we, as Christians, believe that God is our authority for truth, and that he has revealed himself in many way, but supremely through Christ his Son, and through his Holy Word.

We have something objective – something concrete and sure to set our feet upon. We believe that truth can be known, but only because God has determined to make it known through the person of Jesus Christ and through the pages of inspired scripture, Old and New Testaments.

It really was a good conversation. I learned a lot. I hope he learned something. I’ve been praying for him, that the Spirit of God would move upon his heart. I gave him a card and encouraged him to listen to sermons. Perhaps he will listen to this one. I also offered to meet with him to study the scriptures together. I am growing more convinced that evangelism in our modern time will need to be done like this – it needs to be personal, thorough, and methodical.

So why am I telling you about all of this now?

I tell you about this to make the point that John’s gospel is incredibly relevant for today.  The people that John was trying to pursued in the writing of his gospel were not altogether different from the people that you and I interact with today.

The question was the same then as now. Who is Jesus? How are we to understand his person and work? How are we to understand his relation to the Father?

The goal was the same then as now – that people would “believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing… may have life in his name.” (John 20:31, ESV)

Notice something about the text before us this morning. Jesus (and John, as he wrote) understood that if people were to believe that he was indeed the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing may have life in his name, the issue of authority would need to be addressed.

What I mean is that it is one thing for Christ to claim that he was God incarnate – that he was God in the flesh. It’s another thing to provide credible evidence in support of this claim.

Says who? That is how people respond to the claims of Christ then and now. Says who? On who’s authority? Who are we to believe concerning these things? On who’s word?

Notice that this is precisely the issue that Jesus is dealing with here in this wonderful passage.

He admits in verse 31 that, “If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not true.”

We are to think in legal terms here. A defendant’s testimony, if it stands alone, is not valid. It’s not credible. He may in fact be telling the truth, but his testimony is invalid – it carries little, if any, weight. Jesus is aware that if his word is to be accepted and recognized as true, others need to testify on his behalf.

In verse 32 he says, “There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true.”

So there is another witness, Jesus says. There is someone who is testifying on my behalf, that I am indeed the Son of God. 

Some have been confused by this statement because Christ speaks of one witness here – “There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true”.  But then John goes on to mention three witnesses in the  proceeding text. He will talk about John the Baptist as a witness; the works that he was doing as a witness, and the scriptures themselves as a witness – three witnesses, not one. And yet he only mentions one witness in verse 32.

The meaning is this: God the Father is the one who testifies concerning the Son. God the Father is the witness that Jesus is referring to here. And yet God has spoken through the Baptist, through the works or signs, and through the Holy Scriptures themselves – though Moses.  That is what is said in verse 37 – “And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me…” (John 5:37a, ESV)

So to answer the critical question, says who? or, on who’s authority are we to accept the claims of Christ? The answer is that God the Father is authoritative. God the Father is the one who testifies that Jesus is indeed the eternal Son of God. He has done so through the Baptist, through the works of Christ, and through the scriptures themselves.

Let’s consider these one at a time:

First of all, Jesus urges us to believe in him because God the Father has testified concerning him through John the Baptist.

Verse 33: “You sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth. Not that the testimony that I receive is from man [ultimately], but I say these things so that you may be saved. He [John] was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light.” (John 5:33–35, ESV)

The testimony of John the Baptist might not seem that impressive to those of us who live almost 2,000 years removed from the event, but we should remember that John’s ministry was a powerful one. He gathered large crowds to himself. Many believed in his message and considered him a prophet.

Jesus is reminding these Jews of their willingness to except John’s word at first. He was a burning lamp, and they, for a time, took joy in walking in the light that he provided. The reminder that Jesus is providing is that John’s ministry culminated in his proclamation that Jesus was the Christ, the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. John himself confessed that Jesus must increase and that he must decrease. John’s mission was to testify – to serve as a witness – that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of God.

 

Secondly, Jesus urges us to believe in him because God the Father testified concerning him through the works that he was preforming.

In verse 36 Jesus says, “But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me.” (John 5:36, ESV)

Jesus points to a greater and more powerful testimony than the testimony of John, namely, the works that he was doing. Jesus’ works were the works that the Father gave him to accomplish. The works – the signs – the miracles that he preformed served to testify or bear witness that Jesus was truly from the Father – he was from above.

These works were, and are, a most powerful testimony. It is one thing for one man to say concerning another, “behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world”, but it is another thing all together for that man to turn water to wine, to heal the lame and blind, to calm a stormy sea, to multiply a few loaves and fish to feed thousands, to call a man to life who was in the grave for three days, and to raise himself up from the dead.

These miracles of Christ served to testify that his words were true – that he was indeed the Christ, the eternal Son of God.

Thirdly, Jesus urges us to believe in him because God the Father has testified concerning him through the Holy Scriptures.

Verse 39: “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me…” (John 5:39, ESV)

Verse 45 and 46: “Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope. For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me.” (John 5:45–46, ESV)

Jesus has identified John the Baptist as a witness; he has also identified the works that he was doing as a witness; here he points to Holy Scripture.

This, I think, is the most powerful testimony of the three. It is the most sound, objective, and concrete of the three. Scripture is timeless. It is immovable. It is sure. We are able to study it now just as they were able to study it then. And as we study it we see that it everywhere points to Jesus Christ.

And so, yes, John the Baptists testimony was powerful. Yes, it would have been wonderful to see the works of Christ. Both of these witness are indeed persuasive. But the scriptures are able to persuade us even still as they, from Genesis to Revelation, testify to Jesus the Christ the Son of God, and the salvation that is found in his name.

Think of it. The scriptures were written over a 1,500 year period of time. They were written by at least 40 different authors. There are 66 individual books, and yet they come together to tell one story. It is the story of redemption.

The scriptures tells us about creation – “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth…”. The scriptures tell us about the fall, man’s alienation from God, and just condemnation. But the scriptures also tell us the story of God redeeming love.

God promised to save. He promised to redeem. He promised to defeat the serpent and to conquer sin and death. He promised to establish his eternal kingdom, a kingdom where,

“…the dwelling place of God is with man. [where] He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” (Revelation 21:3–4, ESV)

The Holy Scriptures are the inspired record of God’s redeeming acts. They are the record of God’s covenants and promises. The scriptures have Jesus Christ at the center – they all point to him. To borrow Paul’s language from 2 Corinthians 1:20, “…all the promises of God find their Yes in [Jesus]. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.”

Jesus points people, ultimately, to the scriptures. The scriptures testify concerning him, that he is the Christ, the eternal Son of God.

This is, of course, most ironic when it comes to the Jews who opposed Jesus. It is ironic because they claimed to love the scriptures.  “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me…” (John 5:39, ESV)

There were some (perhaps we can even say, many) in Jesus’ day who, though they read the scriptures, failed to read them correctly. There were some who, as they read the Old Testament, came to the conclusion that they would stand right before God because of their ethnicity. There were others who, as they read the Old Testament, came to the conclusion that they would stand right before God because of their morality. Christ and his apostles interpreted the Old Testament properly insisting that salvation is available, not on the basis of race, and not on the basis of law keeping, but through faith in the Christ, whom God promised to send from long ago – Jesus of Nazareth, the Eternal Son of God.

The Jewish people were particularly fond of Moses. Many had set their hope upon him, and upon their ability to keep the law given through him. And what does Jesus say concerning Moses? “Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope. For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me.” (John 5:45–46, ESV)

Jesus said this kind of thing again and again in his ministry. He insisted that he was the one to whom the scriptures pointed as the Messiah – as the Savior of the World.

Matthew 5:17: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” (Matthew 5:17, ESV)

Jesus spoke to two of his disciples on the road to Emmaus, saying, “‘O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?’ And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.” (Luke 24:25–27, ESV)

So what does Jesus point to in the end? The scriptures! The scriptures bear witness concerning him!

And so Jesus has piled up three substantial witnesses on his side. All of them, he claims, are from the Father – John the Baptist, the works (miracles) that he preformed, and the Holy Scriptures themselves.

That is quite a collection! Jesus has a lot going for him. He has assembled quite a team! You would think that, with these witness stacked in Jesus’ corner, the Jews would soon believe.

But what is the result?

Verse 40:  “…yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.” (John 5:40, ESV)

They refuse to come. They refuse the offer of life found in his name?

This is our reaction to Jesus apart for the wooing of the Holy Spirit. We reject him. We refuse to come. Even with all of this testimony heaped up before us we, in our sinful condition, refuse to believe.

The question is why?

What is it about man that makes him so hostile to the things of God?

What is it that make us refuse to come to Christ that we might have life in his name?

Jesus identifies three things in this text. He levels three criticisms against those were persisting in their rejection of him. All of them point to the thoroughly depraved, and altogether hardened condition of their hearts.

First of all, Jesus points out that those rejecting him are persistent in their unwillingness to receive the word of God.

They stubbornly refused to receive, in their hearts, as it were, God’s word – God’s revelation.

Verse 37-38: Jesus says, “And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me. His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen, and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent.” (John 5:37–38, ESV)

I don’t know that I could explain these two verses any better than Leon Morris has done:

“There ignorance is threefold. (i) They have never heard God’s voice. Moses heard that voice (Exod. 33:11), but they are no true followers of Moses, otherwise they would have heard God’s voice in Jesus (3:34; 17:8). (ii.) They have never seen God’s form. Israel saw that form (Gen 32:30-31), but they are no true Israelites. Were they, they would have seen God in Jesus (14:9). (iii.)They do not have God’s word abiding in them. The Psalmist laid up God’s word in his heart (Psalm 119:11), but they do not share his religious experience. Had they done so they would have receive that word from Jesus.”

There remained in these a hardness of heart, an unwillingness to receive God’s revelation.

Secondly, Jesus points out that those rejecting him do not have the love of God abiding in them.

Verse 42: “But I know that you do not have the love of God within you.” (John 5:42, ESV)

Thirdly, Jesus points out that those rejecting him are more concerned with living for the glory that comes from man than for the glory that comes from God.

Verses 43-44: “I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not receive me. If another comes in his own name, you will receive him. How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?” (John 5:43–44, ESV)

These three indictments are significant.

They reveal that the reason why people remained in unbelief is not ultimately due to a lack of evidence concerning the Jesus Christ, the Son of God. It’s not as if these witnesses are insufficient, or their testimony unclear.

The issue is the human heart. People, apart from the work of the Holy Spirit, are unwilling to receive God’s words. They do not love God as they ought. They do not seek to please him, but rather to please men so as to benefit themselves in regards to the things of this world.

Conclusion  

Let’s return briefly to my conversation with the salesman, by way of conclusion.

It was interesting that, in the course of conversation, three things emerged as significant hindrances to this man confessing Jesus as the eternal Son of God, the second person of the Trinity.

One, he seemed unwilling to look to the scriptures as authoritative. He was unwilling to confess them as inspired, inerrant, authoritative and clear.

Two,  there were things in his life that he was not willing to give up in order to follow Christ.

Three, he was concerned that if he were confess Christ as the eternal Son of God, he would jeopardize and perhaps loose his relationship with his wife and children.

By no means am I suggesting that these are easy things. I am simply pointing out that some things never change.

What about you? Are you willing willing to receive God’s word? Is the love of God in your heart, so much so that you would gladly loose all to possess him? And finally, are you living to please man or God?

Reading of God’s Word

John 5:19–30 (ESV)¹⁹ So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise. ²⁰ For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing. And greater works than these will he show him, so that you may marvel. ²¹ For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will. ²² The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, ²³ that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him. ²⁴ Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life. ²⁵ “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. ²⁶ For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. ²⁷ And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. ²⁸ Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice ²⁹ and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment. ³⁰ “I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me.

Introduction

There are three major world religions which find their origin in Palestine: Islam, Judaism, and Christianity.  All three insist that there is but one God. This is the thing that the three share in common – the insistence that God is one!

One of the things that sets Christianity apart from the other two is our answer to the question, who is Jesus? The Muslims regard him as a prophet; the Jews consider him a false prophet, a false Messiah; Christians confess that he is nothing less than the Son of God.  The question, who is Jesus?, or what is the relation of Jesus to the one true God? is a question that divides.

Listen to the words of the Nicene Creed, penned in A.D. 325. It is a wonderful summery of the Christian understanding of who Christ is.

“I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made.

Who, for us men for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge the quick and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end…”

This is a good confession concerning Christ! This is a true confession! The expectation is not that we would fully comprehend these things – how the nature of God and man could be united in one person – but that we would confess them as true because God has revealed these things to us through his Word.

What we have here in John 5:19-30 is a very careful explanation from Jesus himself concerning the relationship between he and the Father. Read the rest of Sermon: John 5:19-30: The Way to the Father is Through the Son, for Father and Son are United as One »

Reading of God’s Word

After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda, which has five roofed colonnades. In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed. One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be healed?” The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another steps down before me.” Jesus said to him, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.” And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked. Now that day was the Sabbath. So the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to take up your bed.” But he answered them, “The man who healed me, that man said to me, ‘Take up your bed, and walk.’ ” They asked him, “Who is the man who said to you, ‘Take up your bed and walk’?” Now the man who had been healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, as there was a crowd in the place. Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, “See, you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.” The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him. And this was why the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because he was doing these things on the Sabbath. But Jesus answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.” This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God. (John 5:1–18, ESV)

Introduction

This story marks the beginning of a new section in John’s gospel.

Chapters two through four clearly go together. They begin and end in Cana of Galilee. Two miracles – the turning of water to wine and the healing of the official’s son – bracket the section, beginning and end. We learned a lot about Jesus from chapters two through four.

As we move forward notice that chapters five through six also go together. Both chapters are patterned in the same way. Both begin by presenting us with a miracle preformed by Jesus.

In chapter five we are told of the healing at the pool on the sabbath; and in chapter six we are told of the feeding of the five thousand. But notice also how both stories give way to long speeches from Jesus. Our red letter versions of the Bible are helpful here in that we see the pattern at a glance. Notice that 5:1-18 is printed mainly in black (the story of the miracle) whereas verses 19-46 are in red (Jesus’ teaching in response to the miracle). The same pattern is present in chapter six:  Verses 1-24 are mainly in black (the story of the miracle) whereas verses 25-71are mainly red (Jesus’ teaching in response to the miracle).

The reason I point this out is to reiterate what has already been said concerning the miracles of Jesus: they are signs. Signs have this function – they point to something greater. They are not an end to the themselves but direct our attention to some greater spiritual, heavenly, and eternal reality. And that is how John uses these miracles in his gospel. They certainly get the attention of the reader (just as they would have captured the attention of the eyewitnesses) but they soon give way to words of explanation – words of interpretation which explain more fully the meaning of the miracle – the significance of the sign.

Two things will happen in chapters five and six.

One, it will become clear that a serious division exists between Jesus and many of the Jews. The conflict was hinted at in chapters two through four, but it will grow and become more obvious in chapters five through six. The religious powers will seek Jesus’ life. The multitudes who follow him will prove fickle and will desert him in the end. There is no mistaking it in John’s gospel – Jesus is headed to the cross form the outset.

Two, Jesus’ true identity and true mission will grow more clear in chapters five and six. It is here in these chapters that Jesus will speak most directly and most clearly concerning his who he is and what he came to accomplish.

And wouldn’t you assume that the more Jesus revealed concerning himself the more people would be drawn to him? Not so. In fact the the opposite is true. The more specific and direct and open Jesus was concerning his true identity and mission, the more people rejected him. Look at the result near the end of chapter six: “After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him.” (John 6:66, ESV)

So that is the lay of the land – that is where we have been and where we are headed.

Let’s Consider the Setting

Notice that in verse 1 we find ourselves back in Jerusalem. John is not concerned to tell us how we got there, nor is he concerned to tell us how much time has passed between Jesus’ visit to Cana of Galilee and this second visit to Jerusalem – the significant thing is that Jesus is there again. Notice that he is there at a feast of the Jews. We do not know which one. Many have speculated. This too seems to be unimportant to John. The significant thing is that Jesus is walking in the way of his people. He is observing the feast days. He is walking with his own, shining as a light amongst them. He is there in their most significant city, observing their most significant holy days, interacting with their most significant people. Jesus came to his own, but, as we will see, his own people did not receive him.

As the story picks up we find Jesus at a pool called Bethesda, which was near a very famous gate called the Sheep Gate, located in the northern part of Jerusalem, to the northeast of the temple square. The pool was probably fed by natural springs.

Notice the detail that John provides. He tells us that there were five colonnades surrounding the pool. You can picture this, can’t you? A pool of water with five large verandas, or covered patios, surrounding it. Sounds like a beautiful place, doesn’t it? But John tells us that, “In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed.” (John 5:3, ESV)

I don’t know if you have ever been in a place with a high concentration of suffering and sickness. Hospitals are a bit like this, only more sterile and organized in our day. The slums of India are like this. I’ve been to orphanages in Mexico where handicap children are cared for. Places like these have a way of stirring compassion within the heart. I think it is very significant that, of all the places Jesus could have been, he is found here walking amongst the needy.

Verse 4?

The question that naturally arises is, why are these people gathered here at this pool?  

How may of you are reading from either the ESV,  NIV84, TNIV, NLT, or NET? Do you notice something peculiar about verses three through five? Yes! There is no verse four – we move immediately from verse three to verse five.

How many of you are reading from the KJV, NKJV, NASB? Your versions contain verse four. And it reads, “For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had.” (John 5:4, NKJV)

How are we to explain the discrepancy? The simple answer is that certain manuscript traditions contain the words of verse four whereas others do not. In my opinion the ESV, NIV, NLT,  and NET are based upon the more reliable reading. I will slow way down when we come to chapter eight of John’s gospel and teach a bit on textual variances and the discipline of textual criticism when it comes to the ancient Biblical manuscripts. For now it will have to do to simply say that their are two readings found in the ancient manuscripts. The shorter of the two readings (the one lacking “verse four” seems to be the original).

You can imagine a scribe copying the gospel of John and, after copying verse three – “In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water” – thinking to himself, I need to explain why these invalids were gathered here. And so he wrote (perhaps in the margin) the explanation – “For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had.” Over time this note probably found it’s way into the text itself.

It is a helpful explanation, isn’t it? We, as modern readers are unfamiliar with the pool of Bethesda and so it is good to know that there were a great number of people who were sick and superstitions gathered at this pool. At certain times the water would stir.  They believed it to be an angel. And they believed that the pool had healing potential. They were superstitious.

The note of explanation is helpful, but probably not a apart of the original gospel – thus the jump from verse three to five in many of our modern translations. If you are troubled by this please talk to me, or wait a couple of months until we come to John 8 where more time will be devoted to this topic.

The important thing is to notice that Jesus was there walking amongst the very needy. There is a great multitude of them. They are clearly desperate.

The Invalid 

Notice that Jesus, though he certainly could have touched and healed every one of these, sets his attention upon one particular individual. We are told in verse five that, “One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years.” (John 5:5, ESV) The story zooms in upon him.

This man is desperate. He has been in this state for thirty-eight years. That is a long time. Perhaps he was thirty-eight years old, having been born this way. Perhaps he was much older than that, having been paralyzed later in life. We don’t know. But we can sympathize with him. Thirty-eight years is a long time to suffer in this way. He was desperate. He was probably willing to try anything. So far the pool of Bethesda thing was not working to well for him.  We don’t know how long he had been at the pool. The text only tells us that Jesus “knew he had already been there a long time.”

It’s hard to believe that, having been there a long time, he never made it down into the pool. I would imagine that he did. But you know how superstitions go. If you get into the water and it doesn’t work, an explanation must be provided – Well, you need to be the first one in; Or, you need to have more faith as you go in; Or, you need to say these words as you go in – or something like that. 

Clearly this man is in a place of desperation and despair. This man is buried in hopelessness. Year upon year of disappointment has been heaped up upon him.

The Sign

And then Jesus, the Son of God arrives. He – the one who spoke the universe into existence – looks upon this man with compassion and simply says, “Do you want to be healed?”

Jesus knew the answer to the question. Obviously the man wanted to be healed. Jesus asked the question to involve the man. And notice how he responds! Verse 7: “The sick man answered him, ‘Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another steps down before me.’” He’s utterly clueless concerning the identity of the man standing before him.

This kind of response should sound familiar to you by now.

To Nicodemus Jesus said, “you must be born again.” Nicodemus said to him, ‘How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?’” (John 3:4, ESV)

To the woman at the well Jesus said, ‘If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.’” (John 4:10, ESV) The woman response? “Sir, you have nothing to draw water with, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water?” (John 4:11, ESV)

Jesus offers healing to this man and he, like the others, could not see beyond the things of this world. His eyes were fixed upon the here and now – upon the physical and tangible. His only hope was the pool of Bethesda – he could not see beyond that. The great irony is that the Son of God – the one who spoke the universe into existence – was speaking to him, offering him healing, and he didn’t perceive it.

Notice that Jesus heals him anyways, despite his lack of understanding.

He healed him by simply speaking a word. The eternal Word of God healed the man by speaking a word. “Jesus said to him, ‘Get up, take up your bed, and walk.’ And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked…” (John 5:8–9, ESV)

That’s quite a miraculous thing. We talk about the miracles of Jesus often so they may become common to us. Think of it. A man could not walk for thirty-eight years and he stands up and walks when Jesus speaks a word. That is incredible. That is a miracle.

The Jews and the Man

The last six words of verse nine serve as a transition. The text says, “Now that day was the Sabbath.” (John 5:9, ESV) This will become very significant.

The scene shifts from the working of the miracle to the interaction between the invalid-man-made-whole and the Jews.

Tell me, how would expect the Jews to react to an event like this? You would expect them to rejoice! You would expect them to stand in awe! You would expect them to inquire of Jesus concerning his ability to heal.

But how do they respond to the man? Surprisingly they rebuke him for carrying his mat on the Sabbath!

This is terrible for two reasons.

One, it is an abuse of the Sabbath command. The fourth commandment forbids the people of God from engaging in work on the Sabbath. It is to be a day of rest and worship. To claim that a man – just healed – is breaking the fourth commandment by carrying the bed he had been bound to for thirty-eight years is a complete misunderstanding of the fourth commandments, and an abuse of it. As it is said elsewhere, the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. The Sabbath was a gift to man. It still is. We are to rest one day out seven. Now that Christ has come we rest on the first day, not the seventh, because of his resurrection. We call it the Lord’s Day. It is to be obeyed, but in the right spirit and and without the added trappings of legalistic religion. Some in Jesus’ day had transformed the Sabbath from a gift into a great burden.

Two, this response of theirs was terrible in that they were so concerned with the details of their man made religion that they were unable to see the glory of God displayed before their very eyes. A man paralyzed for thirty-eight years was walking before them, carrying the thing he was once bound to, and they are unimpressed.

I picture a child bringing an assignment home with an “A+” on it beaming with excitement. He shows it to Dad expecting the Father to rejoice with him. Instead the Father says, look you misspelled this word. You can do better next time. Such a response would be unthinkable, and yet this is how many of the Jews responded to this miracle. “It is not lawful for you to take up your bed on the Sabbath.” Wow. Talk about blindness.

The invalid made whole responded to them saying, “The man who healed me, that man said to me, ‘Take up your bed, and walk.’” (John 5:11, ESV)

I’m not sure I like his response.

Notice that there is a tone of blame-shifting here. “The man who healed me, that man said to me, ‘Take up your bed, and walk.’”  You would expect the man stand up to the critics and say, are you kidding me! I am walking and you are concerned about me carrying my mat. Instead he cowers before the religious leaders and shifts the blame to Jesus, though he does not yet know him by name. He does not know Jesus by name because, according to verse thirteen, “Jesus had withdrawn, as there was a crowd in the place.” (John 5:13, ESV)

The Man and Jesus 

Now in verse fourteen we are told of yet another interaction between Jesus and this particular man. “Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, ‘See, you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.’” (John 5:14, ESV) 

Notice that Jesus found the man; the man was not looking for Jesus. This says something about the condition of the man’s heart. Though he had been made whole at Jesus’ command he does not seem interested in finding Jesus. Instead he is enjoying his health in the temple, associating with those who had just criticized his Sabbath breaking.

Notice also what Jesus says to him. in verse 14: “See, you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.” Some have taken this to mean that the paralysis experienced by the man was the result of some sin and that Jesus was urging repentance so that some worse physical ailment would not come upon him.

That interpretation is possible. The scriptures are clear concerning the relationship between sickness and sin.

One, all sickness is the indirect result of sin. Sickness and death did not exist before the fall.

Two, some are ill because of specific sin. For some, there is a direct link between their sin and their sickness.

“Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged.” (1 Corinthians 11:27–31, ESV)

Three, not all illness is the direct result of sin. Jesus addresses this most specifically in John 11:4, saying,  “But when Jesus heard it [the sickness of Lazarus] he said, ‘This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.’” (John 11:4, ESV)

So it is possible that when Jesus warned against something worse happening to the man he had something worse physically in mind.

I think it more likely that Jesus is here concerned for the man’s soul. The worse thing that he has in mind is not physical sickness, but the final judgment.

Notice that this man seems altogether uninterested in knowing and following Jesus. He was healed, and did not know the name of the man who healed him. When he was confronted by the Jews concerning his breaking of the Sabbath he does not confess Christ – he does not defend Christ – but shifts the blame to him. Furthermore, he does not look for Jesus but rather Jesus has to look for him. He simply enjoyed the blessing of physical healing and wanders freely about the temple. In verse fifteen we see that after he learns the name of the man who healed him, he actually goes out of his way to report him to the Jews. Verse 15: “The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him.” (John 5:15, ESV). Also, in the following passage (the one we will consider next week ) Christ responds to all of this emphasizing two things – his ability to give eternal life and also to judge.

Therefore, when Jesus warns the man, telling him to repent so that nothing worse may happen to him, he is concerned, not for his health, but for his soul. This man is in danger of gaining the world but loosing his own soul – of being healed in body, but not in spirit – of experiencing life in the here and now but suffering eternal death at the judgment.

I think all of this becomes even more clear when we compare this story with John chapter nine and the story of the healing of the man born blind. The stories share much in common, but the response of the men who were healed could not be more different. The blind man confesses Christ, defends him in the face of persecution, and is finally expelled from the synagogue by the Jews, being comforted by Jesus afterwards.

So Jesus healed the invalid, but that was not his deepest concern. He finds him and addresses more serious things – eternal things – things pertaining to the salvation of his soul. Sadly, the healed man simply disappears from the story, which suggests that he was uninterested in following Christ – uninterested in trusting in him for the forgiveness of sin. It is a tragic story in the end.

The Jews and Jesus

The story eventually leads to the first direct conflict between Jesus and the Jews.

Verse 15:  “The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him. And this was why the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because he was doing these things on the Sabbath.” (John 5:15–16, ESV)

The Sabbath becomes a prime source of tension between the Jews and Jesus. They have have heaped rules and regulations upon the biblical concept of the Sabbath, Jesus keeps it correctly.

Notice Jesus’ response in verse 17: “But Jesus answered them, ‘My Father is working until now, and I am working.’” (John 5:17, ESV)

Two things should be observed.

One, Jesus points out that when God rested from his work of creation on the seventh day, he did not rest from all his labors, he rested specifically from his work of original creation. His work of providence continued. He continued to rule and reign. He continued to preserve the world he had created. Jesus was following his the Fathers example in his observance of the Sabbath – he certainly rested from his labor, but he did not give himself over to total inactivity. He still engaged in doing acts of mercy.  We know from other texts that he still gave himself to acts of necessity (picking grains and eating with his disciples).

This is what we believe concerning the Christian Sabbath and teach our children:

Q. 65. How is the Sabbath to be sanctified?

A. The Sabbath is to sanctified by a holy resting all that day, even from such worldly employments and recreations as are lawful on other days, and spending the time in the public and private exercises of God’s worship, except so much as is to be taken up in the works of necessity and mercy. (Lev. 23:3; Isa. 58:13,14; Isa. 66:23; Matt. 12:11,12)

Notice, secondly, that Jesus makes a tight link between he and the Father in verse 17.  He says, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.” In other words, these works preformed by the Jesus are the Fathers works. Jesus was doing the will an work of the Father.

Verse 18 concludes, “This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath [that is, the Sabbath according to their customs], but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.” (John 5:18, ESV)

What does this text mean?

First of all, it is important to recognize that this story is about much more than physical healing.

I suppose that some would read this text and say, do you see! Jesus came to heal physical ailments. That was his primary mission, and it is his primary concern still today – to heal those who are sick. That is the will of Jesus for you! That would be a misinterpretation of the text.

One, notice that Jesus healed one man out of a great multitude of people who were sick. If physical healing were his prime concern you would expect Jesus to set up a clinic there in that place.

Two, notice that Jesus was not finished with the man after he healed his body. He found him expressing deep concern over his soul.

Three, notice that Jesus explains the reason for this miracle in 19-29, a text we will explore together next week. There he makes it clear that this miracle was a sign which signified some greater spiritual and eternal truth – namely the Sons authority to give life to whom he choses (5:21).

Physical healing is not the main point of this text. Jesus’ ability to give life is.

Secondly, this story calls people away from trusting in superstitious religion. The man could not Jesus for who he was because eyes were so fixed upon the pool of water in front of him. He was blind to Christ because his eyes were fixed upon the things of this world.

This is common today. People are superstitious in their religious devotion They say, if only I could touch that icon, or, if only that man would pray for me, or, perhaps it is true if I sent money to that ministry blessing will come my way. We are to look to Christ, trusting in him alone, resting in his him, humbly submitting to his will for us.

Thirdly, this story warns against the absurdity of legalistic religion. Legalism in religion – that is is the adding to the commands of God, or the belief that keeping the commands of God will lead to life eternal – has a way of deadening the soul to the things of God. The legalist cannot see the glory of Christ; he can only see his rules and regulations. The cross is foolishness to him. Salvation by grace alone through faith alone is unintelligible to him. So it was with many of the Jews in Jesus’ day.

Fourthly, this story warns against the emptiness of worldliness.  The man was healed in body, but lost in soul. Many, I fear, go on enjoying the blessings of God in this life – they eat and drink, and laugh and play – and yet they do not give a thought to the God who made them, from who’s hand these blessing come. “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26, ESV)

Fifthly, this story exalts Jesus.  He is kind and compassionate. He has the power to give life. You and I are helpless apart from him. We, before we came to Christ, were in a most desperate state. The only reasonable thing is to call out to him for life. And once we have been raised up, the only reasonable thing is that we would follow after him with all we are.

Reading of God’s Word

“After the two days he departed for Galilee. (For Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in his own hometown.) So when he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast. So he came again to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water wine. And at Capernaum there was an official whose son was ill. When this man heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. So Jesus said to him, “Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.” The official said to him, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” Jesus said to him, “Go; your son will live.” The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and went on his way. As he was going down, his servants met him and told him that his son was recovering. So he asked them the hour when he began to get better, and they said to him, “Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him.” The father knew that was the hour when Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live.” And he himself believed, and all his household. This was now the second sign that Jesus did when he had come from Judea to Galilee.” (John 4:43–54, ESV)

Introduction

As we study the scriptures together on Sunday mornings I hope you never grow tired of asking the question, what does this text mean? or what was the authors intention as he wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit?

It’s important that we settle down in the text of scripture together – that we immerse ourselves in it – swim in it, wanting nothing more than to know what it means. It is only after we know what it means that we are able to go on making proper application to our lives. This takes work. It takes patience.

Notice that the text before us today is a historical narrative – it is a story (that is the case with the majority of John’s gospel). It’s important to keep this in mind as we approach this passage because narratives are to be interpreted in a particular way.

The narratives (stories) found in scripture and the didactic (teaching) portions of scripture have this in common: they both convey truth. The author, be it Paul or John or some other, had something particular in mind when he wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Paul had something in mind when he wrote his letter to the Romans, for example. But he wrote in a most direct way. Romans is didactic literature. Paul conveyed truth there in the form of a letter. He instructed the Roman church in a most rational, linear, and black and white way.

We should remember, though, that John, like Paul, had something particular to say. There was something on his mind – some truth that he wanted to convey. He wrote, not a letter, but a gospel. He wrote, not in didactic form, but in the form of historical narrative.

I say this today because I think it is common for folks to approach the narrative portions of scripture as if they have no real concrete meaning – as if anything goes – as if the passage is completely open to one’s personal and subjective interpretation. This is not so. John is communicating something specific by telling this story as he does. We must study the passage with care so as to understand the authors intent.

When studying narratives it is important to (among other things) give special attention to the place the author gives to the story in his overall work. Also, we should be mindful of how the author introduces the story; to the things he emphasizes while telling the story, and to the things he does not emphasize. We should give special attention to the characters in the story, the way they are introduced and developed, and to the way they interact with or contrast other characters already introduced.

I would argue that this story in particular is a difficult one to understand if we fail to apply these sound principles of interpretation. The story is confusing, I think, and it looses it’s force if it is considered on it’s own and divorced from the rest of John’s gospel.

What I am saying is that this story is an important one. It has been told for a reason. It’s aim is to move us to an authentic faith in Christ.

Let’s consider it carefully together.

Consider, first of all, the placement of this story in John’s gospel

This story serves as the conclusion to a pronounced section in John.

Chapter 2 begins with the story of Jesus turning water to wine at the wedding in Cana of Galilee. Chapter 4 ends with Jesus back up in Cana of Galilee preforming yet another sign.

John tells us in 2:11 that the turning of water to wine was, “…the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory…” 4:54 reveals that the healing of the officials son “…was now the second sign that Jesus did when he had come from Judea to Galilee.” (John 4:54, ESV)

Clearly this story is connected to what came before it. Jesus has completed a circuit, if you will, having traveled from Cana to Jerusalem to the wilderness of Judea up into Samaria and now back to Cana of Galilee. The first and second miracles preformed in Cana of Galilee serve as brackets, it you will, to this entire section in John.

This is important to recognize. It clues us into the fact that this story is not meant to stand alone. It is a part of something bigger, namely, chapters 2-4 of John, and the gospel of John as a whole.

Consider, secondly, how John introduces this story

Look with me at verses 43-46:

“After the two days he departed for Galilee. (For Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in his own hometown.) So when he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast. So he came again to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water wine…” (John 4:43–46, ESV)

There are some things that need to be explained in verses 43-46.

For example, how are we to understand the words, “For Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in his own hometown.” What does that mean?

We should remember that Jesus was born in the region of Galilee. Specifically, he was born in Nazareth. Nazareth was about 10 miles to the south of Cana where the water was turned to wine and where Jesus spoke healing to the officials son. Capernaum – the city where the official traveled from – was about 15 miles to the east of Cana. So Jesus is about return to his homeland (the word hometown that we see in the ESV can also be translated homeland).

We should also remember that Jesus had just experienced wonderful success in Samaria. Many believed in him in an authentic way in that place. He was largely rejected down in Judea where the Baptist was ministering (he gained a few disciples but had to flee the religious powers), he was received by the Samaritans, and, with that as the context,  we read in verse 43, “After the two days he departed for Galilee. (For Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in his own hometown.)”

The word “for” is significant. It indicates that there was a purpose behind Jesus leaving Samaria and going to Galilee again. He traveled to Galilee – back to his homeland, back to his fellow Jews, “For… [and here is the reason] Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in his own hometown [homeland]”.  

The meaning of this is rather straightforward. Jesus left Samaria and traveled back to Galilee because he would not be honored there. This statement is confusing only because we would never do such a thing. It’s hard to understand why Jesus would leave behind success and go on to a place where he knew he would be rejected.

But this was his mission. He was to minister primarily to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. His disciples would be sent to the ends of the earth, but he came to offer himself to his own even though his own would not receive him. They would reject him. They would kill him. But this was the purpose for his coming. 

Consider also another difficulty. In verse 44 we are told that “a prophet has no honor in his own hometown [or homeland]”, but in verse 45 we read, “So when he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast.”

John seems to immediately contradict himself:  “a prophet has no honor in his homeland”, but then “the Galileans welcomed him”.

There is no contradiction here when we realize that it is possible to welcome Christ, but for all the wrong reasons. Why did they welcome him? Because they had seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. 

They were interested, not in Jesus as Jesus – but in the signs and wonders that he preformed. There is a way of welcoming Jesus that is all wrong. There is a way of believing in Jesus without believing in him at all.

This is a constant theme in John. In John we see that some reject Jesus outright while others receive him. But among those who receive him are those who reactive him truly, and those who receive him only superficially. There are those who believe, and then there are those who believe.

John 2:23-25:

“Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing. But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man.” (John 2:23–25, ESV)

And so these introductory remarks are more than just transitional details. They set the stage for what is going to happen in this place. Jesus is leaving fruitful ministry behind amongst, of all people, the Samaritans. He is going back to his own. But he going back knowing that they will reject him. They welcome him, but only superficially.

I wonder, why would the people welcome Jesus in this way?

People love to be associated with power.

People love to root for a hometown boy.

People are greedy for gain.

Consider, Thirdly, the main character in this story.

We are told in verse 46 that there was an official who lived in Capernaum who’s son was ill. When he heard that Jesus was in Cana he urgently traveled the 15 miles up to Cana to seek Jesus’ assistance.

Notice a few things about this man:

One, he was an official. This means that he worked in some capacity for the Roman government. Perhaps he was associated with Herod Antipas, who was a wicked man. This seems significant to me. He would have been viewed by the Jews as a traitor if he was Jewish, and a heathen if he was Greek. He is therefore, like the Samaritans, a most unlikely figure to get it right when it comes to the Messiah.

Two, notice that he is at a place of desperation. His son is ill and at the point of death. We see here a father deeply concerned for his son. This is no trivial thing, but a matter of life and death.

Three, notice that he runs to Jesus thinking that he would be able to help. Verse 47: “When this man heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death.”

Though this is not the meaning of the text, there is here a beautiful picture of the love that a mother and father ought to have for their children and how we ought to intercede for them.

But notice Jesus’ strange response to this man’s request. Verse 48: “So Jesus said to him, ‘Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.’”

This response should not surprise us to much. Do you remember how Jesus responded to his own mother when she requested that he deal with the problem of the lack of wine? “And Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.’” (John 2:4, ESV) Jesus, as I explained when preaching on that text, resisted at first in order to draw out deeper faith. The same is true here.

Also, it should be recognized that the “you” in verse 48 is plural while the “him” is singular (obviously). This is significant. “Jesus said to him, ’Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.’” It was as if Jesus were talking to the Galileans through the man. It is a criticism of them in general, and not necessarily the man.

But notice that man is undeterred. He continues on expressing his desperation – his legitimate need. Verse 49: “The official said to him, ‘Sir, come down before my child dies.’” Verse 50: “Jesus said to him, ‘Go; your son will live.’ The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and went on his way.” (John 4:50, ESV)

As the story progresses we are told that the man journeyed home on the next day (it was to late to make the journey back home on the same day, though I’m sure he was anxious to return).  As he traveled his servants meet him on the road with good news. His son was recovering. The fever had broken. The man asked when the recovery began. They reported that it because at about 1:00pm the previous day, the same time that Jesus had spoken this word.

The man believed. His whole household, following his lead, believed in Jesus.

The Point of the Story

So what is the point of this story?

John, again and again, is setting examples before us that are meant to compel us to consider Christ deeply and truly, and to welcome him, follow him, believe in him from the heart.

The disciples of John who became the disciples of Jesus are to be imitated. They followed him, listened to his teaching and believed.

Nicodemus is to be imitated. He was one of the few from amongst the Pharisees who came to Jesus inquiring deeply of him.

The woman of Samaria, and fellow townspeople, are to be imitated. They came to Christ and implored him to stay that they might hear more.  John 4:42: “They said to the woman, ‘It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world.’”

And now this man is to be imitated. He came to Jesus out of a sense of deep and legitimate need. He came believing, but his faith grew. He came to led his whole household to faith in Christ.

All of these, each of them coming from different sectors of society, are compelling us to do the same thing: to consider the claims of Christ and to believe in his name.

Do not forget John’s concluding remarks in John 20:30-31:

“Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” (John 20:30–31, ESV)

In contrast to these are many others who are interested in Jesus, but for all the wrong reasons.

Some welcomed him or believed in him so long as he showed promise as a politician.

“Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.” (John 6:15, ESV)

“After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him.” (John 6:66, ESV)

Some welcomed him so long as he would preformed signs.

“Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing. But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man.” (John 2:23–25, ESV)

Many were preoccupied with the signs. They were interested in Jesus so long as he would continue to turn water to wine, heal the sick, give sight to the blind, and multiply the bread fish. That was fine by them. Jesus the miracle worker was someone they could believe in.

But, as we will see in John’s gospel, when Jesus begins to suggest that he not interested in being the kind of king that they wanted, the people rejected him. When he begins to suggest that he is not primarily interested in wine and bread, physical sight and physical healing, the people are quick to leave him. When Jesus teaches that these signs are just that – signs which point to something greater – the people abandon him.

A sign is something that points to a greater reality. The miracles of Jesus are just that – signs. The sign is not the main thing – it points to the main thing.

When Jesus turned the water to wine he was not mainly concerned with the wine, but show forth his glory and to say something about how he would provide purification by the shedding of his blood.

When Jesus gave sight to bind man his primary concern was not the blind man (though he was certainly overwhelmed with compassion, but to display is ability to open the eyes of men, spiritually speaking.

I could go on and on. The point is that the people were fixated with the things of this world. They were only interested in Jesus so long as he would benefit them in a worldly way. The gospel of John insisted that we come to Christ ultimately, not for what he can do for us in the here and now, but because of what offers the human soul as it pertains to eternity.

“…these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” (John 20:30–31, ESV)